The Texas Lawbook

Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury

Commercial Litigation

Q&A With Trial Lawyer Kim Bueno 

A curious housekeeper who noticed Kim Bueno lugging weeks’ worth of outfits into her hotel room initiated a conversation with the trial attorney. The housekeeper asked Bueno about her trial. The former King & Spalding partner, who on Monday joined Kirkland & Ellis, explained that she defended a drug manufacturer against a lawsuit alleging its product was harmful. The housekeeper drilled in on three questions that prompted Bueno to rework her opening statement and to incorporate a standing ritual into her trial preparation.

Krista Torralva

Judge Ho Expresses ‘Sincere Concerns’ About ‘Disrespect’ Shown to Pres. Trump, Judge Hendrix in Concurrence Slamming Supreme Court

In a seven-page concurrence, Fifth Circuit Judge James C. Ho accused the U.S. Supreme Court of affording “special treatment” to “favored litigants” in a case involving deportation under the Alien Enemies Act. And he stood up for U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix, writing that he had "conducted himself in a reasonable and indeed admirable manner,” calling the U.S. Supreme Court’s criticism of his actions in the underlying case “unwarranted and unfortunate.”

Michelle Casady

American Airlines, Supplier.io Settle Lawsuit Over Supplier Diversity Practices

American Airlines and Qurium Solutions, doing business as Supplier.io, have settled a federal lawsuit brought by Edward Blum’s American Alliance for Equal Rights, which alleged that their supplier diversity practices unlawfully prioritized race and ethnicity. While both companies denied any wrongdoing, they agreed to revise their policies to clarify that race and ethnicity will not factor into supplier eligibility or contracting decisions. 

Krista Torralva

Gibbs & Bruns Notches 2 Trial Wins in 2 Days

Recently, trial teams from Gibbs & Bruns convinced two Harris County juries to return complete defense wins for two of its clients, one that was facing as much as $13.7 million in liability and another that was fighting claims seeking more than $20 million in damages. 

Michelle Casady

Litigation Roundup: En Banc Fifth Circuit Decides to ‘Unweave Weaver’

In this edition of Litigation Roundup, we detail two recent Texas Supreme Court rulings defining the contours of the Texas Citizens Participation Act, the whole Fifth Circuit unites to overturn a 45-year-old binding precedent in a lawsuit between a Houston plaintiffs firm and a former associate, and in another Fifth Circuit ruling, a panel upholds a $26.5 million award for a man injured in a collision with a letter carrier, writing that it wouldn’t “manufacture inequity, uncertainty, and arbitrariness” by adopting arguments presented by the Department of Justice in that case.  

Michelle Casady

Houston Crane Co. Slammed with $640M Verdict Over Construction Site Fatality 

Jurors in Harris County this week awarded the family of a man who was killed at a construction site a total of $640 million, most of which came in the form of a whopping $480 million assessment of punitive damages against Houston-based TNT Crane & Rigging.  A day before the jury assessed punitive damages, counsel for TNT had asked the court in an emergency motion for a mistrial, dismissal of the punitive damages phase of trial and sanctions against plaintiffs counsel, Tony Buzbee.

Michelle Casady

Judge Signals Final Ruling in Favor of Conservative Group in Southwest Airlines Student Travel Program Suit

A federal judge in Dallas alerted lawyers in an opinion and order Wednesday of his intention to enter final judgment in favor of Edward Blum’s American Alliance for Equal Rights, awarding them one cent in nominal damages and legal fees in a lawsuit against Southwest Airlines. The case challenged a now-shuttered program that provided free flights to low-income Hispanic students, which the group claimed was discriminatory. The judge opined that Southwest’s “unconditional surrender” justified ending the case without ruling on the merits.

Krista Torralva

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